Inkjet recording apparatus

Abstract

An inkjet recording apparatus includes an ink collection tray and a cleaning liquid feeding mechanism. When recovery operation for a recording head that ejects ink onto a recording medium is performed, the ink collection tray is disposed opposite the recording head to collect ink pushed out onto the ink ejection surface of the recording head. The cleaning liquid feeding mechanism feeds a cleaning liquid for flushing off the ink onto the ink collection tray. The ink collection tray has a waste ink catching portion disposed opposite the ink ejection surface and a waste ink discharge portion disposed adjacent to the waste ink catching portion, and has a downward slope from the waste ink catching portion toward the waste ink discharge portion. The waste ink catching portion has formed in it a plurality of grooves with a V-shaped cross section extending along the downward slope.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An inkjet recording apparatus comprising
 an ink collection tray that, when recovery operation is performed for a recording head that ejects ink onto a recording medium, is disposed opposite the recording head to collect the ink pushed out onto an ink ejection surface of the recording head; and   a cleaning liquid feeding mechanism that feeds onto the ink collection tray a cleaning liquid for flushing off the ink,   wherein   the ink collection tray includes:
 a waste ink catching portion disposed opposite the ink ejection surface; and 
 a waste ink discharge portion disposed adjacent to the waste ink catching portion, 
   the ink collection tray having a downward slope from the waste ink catching portion toward the waste ink discharge portion, and   the waste ink catching portion has formed therein a plurality of grooves with a V-shaped cross section extending along the downward slope.   
     
     
         2 . The inkjet recording apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the plurality of grooves are formed adjacent to each other, parallel to each other, with ridge portions and valley portions alternating along a tray width direction orthogonal to the downward slope.   
     
     
         3 . The inkjet recording apparatus according to  claim 2 , wherein
 the ridge portions located between the plurality of grooves have a round-shaped cross section.   
     
     
         4 . The inkjet recording apparatus according to  claim 2 , wherein
 the plurality of grooves have an inclination angle of 3 to 5 degrees between the ridge portions and the valley portions.   
     
     
         5 . The inkjet recording apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the cleaning liquid feeding mechanism feeds the cleaning liquid to a highest part of the waste ink catching portion.   
     
     
         6 . The inkjet recording apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the recording head has a cleaning liquid feeding portion that feeds the cleaning liquid to the ink ejection surface, and   the cleaning liquid feeding portion doubles as the cleaning liquid feeding mechanism, with the highest part of the waste ink catching portion disposed opposite the cleaning liquid feeding portion.   
     
     
         7 . The inkjet recording apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a maintenance unit that has a wiper movable across the ink ejection surface and that performs the recovery operation for the recording head by wiping off with the wiper the ink pushed out onto the ink ejection surface, and   the ink collection tray is mounted in the maintenance unit.